The Boeing Company

William B Grace

Richard Henry Bossi

Kay Youngdahl Blohowiak

Paul H Shelley, Jr

Marc Joel Piehl

Gregory James Werner

Willard N Westre

Douglas Allen Frisch

Edward McMurray Fisher, Jr

Wesley L Holman

James Robert Schnelz

Edward Li

Derek J Fox

Sven E Axter

Peter J Van Voast

Kenneth M Harrison

Menelaos S Kafkalidis

Patrick D Bertrand

Christopher T Allen

A Lew Wingert

Gary D Tuss

Moe K Soleiman

Judy S Chen

A structural member such as a strut includes a composite material tube having metal end fittings that are attached to the tube by co-bonded, double shear joints. The double shear bond joint construction reduces the residual stress on the bonds that result from mismatch of the coefficients of thermal expansion of the composite tube and the metal end fittings. The ends of the fittings that are bonded to the tube may include a stepped profile that functions to limit the peak stresses in the bonds.

Composite tube having co-bonded end fittings

A method for repeatably fabricating a test specimen assembly comprising a pair of fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP) test specimens adhesively bonded together, the bonded joint having respective areas of substantially different, but consistent variable adhesive bond strengths suitable as a calibration standard. The method comprises fabricating a first FRP test specimen having a bonding surface with first and second areas that have substantially different bonded joint performance-governing characteristics and then using adhesive to bond the bonding surface of the first FRP test specimen to the bonding surface of a second FRP test specimen. The different bonded joint performance-governing characteristics are achieved by treating first and second areas of the surface of the first FRP test specimen using different respective surface preparation techniques.

Methods for fabricating fiber-reinforced plastic test specimen assemblies having weak adhesive bonds

A method of determining moisture content of a composite material includes providing composite material standards with moisture content, collecting infrared spectra on the composite material standards, calibrating the infrared spectra to the moisture content, providing a composite material and predicting moisture content of the composite material based on the infrared spectra and the composite material standards.

Measurement of moisture in composite materials with near-IR and mid-IR spectroscopy

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Seattle, WA, United States of America

William B Grace